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I was very surprised to read of the death, on Christmas Eve, of Stan Tacey. He had survived his wife by only seven days and her death would have been terrible for him.

It was as late as December 10 that I was talking to Stan and he seemed in good form.

His frequent contributions to Bygones were always well-written and entertaining, be they about Derbyshire cricket or his life and times with printers Bemrose and Son.

He served Bemrose for the best part of half a century.

He shared with his wife a passion for Derbyshire County Cricket Club and was a stalwart of the supporters’ club, helping to raise thousands of pounds for the benefit of the club.

I cannot claim to be a friend of Stan but frequently came across him at the County Ground where we exchanged the usual pleasantries and bemoaned the state of cricket. Patrons at the ground will deeply miss the silver-haired, avuncular figure with the affable demeanour, always sporting a Derbyshire CC members’ tie.

The two achievements I most associate with Stan are his successful editorship of the Derbyshire Year Book and him becoming the club’s honorary scorer. One of the highlights of my year is the acquisition of the year book.

Stan became editor in 1983, succeeding Messrs F G Peach and A F Dawn, and immediately reorganised the photographic section. He held the position until 2000 when David Baggett succeeded him.

During his editorship, he maintained the style and character of the year book – nothing controversial. Stan was a “safe pair of hands”.

He began with a review of the 1982 season when Leicestershire were to meet Derbyshire at Grave Road in mid-July in the county championship.

For some reason, the fixture was transferred to the Miners’ Welfare Ground at Snibston colliery, Coalville. Stan recorded the following impressions of his visit:

“The difficulty in finding the ground, there being no direction signs anywhere.

“On arriving at the ground being sold a DIY programme – it was blank!

“The official photographer – not our own John Grainger, I hasten to add, who had no knowledge of cricket and kept asking me various points about the game.

“The slope of the pitch.

“The search for the ball in the long grass at the opposite end to the pavilion.

“Frank Rasmusson trying to score in the open air, holding the scorebook pages down in the fresh breeze.

“The scorer’s assistant climbing a pair of steps to alter the score.

“Gerald Mortimer trying to look out of a small window in the pavilion, his view obscured by people standing outside.

“Two people who arrived late, after having watched part of a game at Leicester before realising they were at the wrong game.

“The gentleman who disappeared at the lunch interval and came back at 4.30pm, apologising because he had been to his son’s wedding.”

I recall the day as being chilly and windy. There was trouble with the make-do sightscreen which seemed to be a frame covered with sheets in a perpetual state of disintegration.

An advertising board also kept blowing over. A spectator took a great catch just outside the boundary, where the ball was later lost in the long grass.

During the course of the day, I encountered Dallas Moir, the Derbyshire slow bowler, lying on a grassy bank near the pavilion. At 6ft 8ins, he was the tallest red-headed Scotsman, born in Malta, to play for the county.

It was certainly a match to remember. In the second innings, Derbyshire needed 207 to win. John Wright opened with 60 but it was Peter Kirsten who piloted Derbyshire to victory, by five wickets, with 102. Kirsten was clean bowled by Jonathan Agnew, now the BBC cricket correspondent.

I bet Stan had a chuckle about that result.

• A joint funeral for Stan and Eileen Tacey was held in the main chapel at Markeaton Crematorium on 2 January, 2008

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County:  Derbyshire

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